The Book of Joyous Children | Page 9

this is her little-est
poetry-piece.
[Illustration]

III

SINGS A "WINKY-TOODEN" SONG--
[Illustration]
O here's a little rhyme for the Spring- or Summer-time--
An
a-ho-winky-tooden-an-a-ho!--
Just a little bit o' tune you can twitter,
May or June,
An a-ho-winky-tooden-an-a-ho!
It's a song that soars
and sings,
As the birds that twang their wings
Or the katydids and
things
Thus and so, don't you know,
An
a-ho-winky-tooden-an-a-ho!
It's a song just broken loose, with no reason or excuse-- An
a-ho-winky-tooden-an-a-ho!
You can sing along with it--or it matters
not a bit--
An a-ho-winky-tooden-an-a-ho!
It's a lovely little thing

That 'most any one could sing
With a ringle-dingle-ding,
Soft
and low, don't you know,
An a-ho-winky-tooden-an-a-ho!
[Illustration]

[Illustration]
IV
AND MAKES NURSERY RHYMES
1
THE DINERS IN THE KITCHEN
[Illustration]
Our dog Fred
Et the bread.
[Illustration]
Our dog Dash
Et the hash.

[Illustration]
Our dog Pete
Et the meat.
[Illustration]
Our dog Davy
Et the gravy.
[Illustration]
Our dog Toffy
Et the coffee.
[Illustration]
Our dog Jake
Et the cake.
[Illustration]
Our dog Trip
Et the dip.
And--the worst,
From the first,--
[Illustration]
Our dog Fido
Et the pie-dough.

2
THE IMPERIOUS ANGLER
Miss Medairy Dory-Ann
Cast her line and caught a man,
[Illustration]
But when he looked so pleased, alack!
She unhooked and plunked
him back.--
"I never like to catch what I can,"
Said Miss Medairy
Dory-Ann.

3
THE GATHERING OF THE CLANS
[Voice from behind high board-fence.]
[Illustration]
"Where's the crowd that dares to go
Where I dare to lead?--you
know!"
[Illustration]
"Well, here's one!"
Shouts Ezry Dunn.
[Illustration]
"Count me two!"
Yells Cootsy Drew.
[Illustration]
"Here's yer three!"
Sings Babe Magee.
[Illustration]
"Score me four!"
Roars Leech-hole Moore.
[Illustration]
"Tally--five!"
Howls Jamesy Clive.
[Illustration]
"I make six!"
Chirps Herbert Dix.
[Illustration]

"Punctchul!--seven!"
Pipes Runt Replevin.
[Illustration]
"Mark me eight!"
Grunts Mealbag Nate.
[Illustration]
"I'm yet nine!"
Growls "Lud'rick" Stein.
[Illustration]
"Hi! here's ten!"
Whoops Catfish Ben.
[Illustration]
"And now we march, in daring line,
For the banks of Brandywine!"

4
"IT"
A wee little worm in a hickory-nut
Sang, happy as he could be,--
[Illustration]
"O I live in the heart of the whole round world,
And it all belongs to
me!"

5
THE DARING PRINCE
A daring prince, of the realm Rangg Dhune,
Once went up in a big
balloon

[Illustration]
That caught and stuck on the horns of the moon,
And he hung up
there till next day noon--
When all at once he exclaimed, "Hoot-toot!"

And then came down in his parachute.
[Illustration]

A DUBIOUS "OLD KRISS"
[Illustration]
Us-folks is purty pore--but Ma
She's waitin'--two years more--tel Pa

He serve his term out. Our Pa he--
He's in the Penitenchurrie!
Now don't you never tell_!--'cause _Sis,
The baby_, _she don't know
he is.--
'Cause she wuz only four, you know,
He kissed her last an'
hat to go!
Pa alluz liked Sis best of all
Us childern.--'Spect it's 'cause she fall

"When she'uz ist a child, one day--
An' make her back look thataway.
Pa--'fore he be a burglar--he's
A locksmiff, an' maked locks, an' keys,

An' knobs you pull fer bells to ring,
An' he could ist make
anything!--
[Illustration]
'Cause our Ma say he can!--An' this
Here little pair o' crutches Sis

Skips round on--Pa maked them--yes-sir!--
An' silivur-plate-name
here fer her!
Pa's out o' work when Chris'mus come
One time, an' stay away from
home,
An' 's drunk an' 'buse our Ma, an' swear
They ain't no "Old
Kriss" anywhere!

An' Sis she alluz say they wuz
A' Old Kriss--an' she alluz does.
But
ef they is a' Old Kriss, why,
When's Chris'mus, Ma she alluz cry?
This Chris'mus now, we live here in
Where Ma's rent's alluz due
ag'in--
An' she "ist slaves"--I heerd her say
She did--ist them words
thataway!
[Illustration]
An' th'other night, when all's so cold
An' stove's 'most out--our Ma
she rolled
Us in th'old feather-bed an' said,
"To-morry's
Chris'mus--go to bed,
"An' thank yer blessed stars fer this--
We don't 'spect nothin' from
Old Kriss!"
An' cried, an' locked the door, an' prayed,
An' turned
the lamp down.... An' I laid
There, thinkin' in the dark ag'in,
"Ef wuz Old Kriss, he can't git in,

'Cause ain't no chimbly here at all--
Ist old stovepipe stuck frue the
wall!"
I sleeped nen.--An' wuz dreamin' some
When I waked up an'
morning's come,--
Fer our Ma she wuz settin' square
Straight up in
bed, a-readin' there
Some letter 'at she 'd read, an' quit,
An' nen hold like she's huggin'
it.--
An' diamon' ear-rings she don't know
Wuz in her ears tel I say
so--
An' wake the rest up. An' the sun
In frue the winder dazzle-un

Them eyes o' Sis's, wiv a sureEnough
gold chain Old Kriss bringed to
'er!
An' all of us git gold things!--Sis,
Though, say she know it "ain't Old
Kriss--
He kissed her, so she waked an' saw
Him skite out--an' it
wuz her Pa."

[Illustration: "ALONG THE BRINK OF WILD BROOK-WAY."]

A SONG OF SINGING
Sing! gangling lad, along the brink
Of wild brook-ways of shoal and
deep,
Where killdees dip, and cattle drink,
And glinting little
minnows leap!
Sing! slimpsy lass who trips above
And sets the
foot-log quivering!
Sing! bittern, bumble-bee, and dove--
Sing!
Sing! Sing!
Sing as you will, O singers all
Who sing because you want to sing!

Sing! peacock on the orchard wall,
Or tree-toad